NEW YORK — Columbia University has agreed to take additional steps to ensure its students feel safe on campus, under a settlement reached Tuesday with a Jewish student who sought a court order barring the Ivy League school required to provide safe access to campus amid protests over the Israel-Hamas war.
The law firm representing the plaintiff in the lawsuit, filed as a class-action complaint, called the settlement a “first-of-its-kind agreement to protect Jewish students from extreme Gaza war protests on campus.” otestors.”
Under the agreement, Columbia must create a new point of contact – a Safe Passage Liaison – for students concerned about their safety. The liaison will handle student safety concerns and coordinate any student requests for escorts through an existing escort program, which the agreement requires to remain available 24/7 until at least December 31.
The settlement also provides academic accommodations for students who were unable to access campus to complete assignments or exams, among other things.
“We are pleased to have reached a resolution and remain committed to our number one priority: the safety of our campus so that all of our students can successfully continue their education and achieve their academic goals,” a university spokesperson said. . in a written statement.
The settlement noted several steps Columbia has already taken to ensure the safety of students on campus, including some controversial steps such as authorizing the New York Police Department to evacuate the university administration building and arrested more than 100 people.
Protests in Columbia, including an encampment, inspired similar demonstrations at colleges and universities across the country, with students demanding that their schools separate from companies that promote Israel’s military efforts in Gaza and, in some cases, from Israel itself.
A legal group representing pro-Palestinian students has urged the U.S. Department of Education’s civil rights office to investigate Columbia’s compliance with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its treatment.
Jay Edelson, an attorney for the Jewish student plaintiff, said the negotiated settlement represents “a return to basic, shared safety principles on campus for all Columbia students” after “extreme protesters” chose to “drive their Jewish peers off campus with threats and intimidation.”
The agreement also states that Columbia “will continue to work to facilitate opportunities for students and faculty to engage in safe, courteous, and constructive dialogue on the important issues raised in recent months” and will not interfering with students’ efforts to make public debates on campus.